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Primo Levi :The Elements of a Life
Primo Levi :The Elements of a Life
paperback
Published:
6 February, 2003
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Description
'One of the best literary biographies of the year...superb... Levi, I think, would have appreciated it' Observer
Re-issued to mark the centenary of Primo Levi’s birth, now featuring a new introduction from the author.
Discover the definitive biography of the iconic writer and Holocaust survivor.
On 11 April 1987 the Italian writer and chemist Primo Levi fell to his death in the house where he was born. More than forty years after his rescue from a Nazi concentration camp, it seemed that Levi had taken his own life. His account of Auschwitz, If This Is a Man, is recognised as one of the essential books of mankind.
Ian Thomson spent over ten years in Italy and elsewhere researching and writing this matchless biography. This incomparable book unravels the strands of a life caught between the factory and the typewriter, family and friends. Deeply researched, it sheds new light on Levi's recurring depressions and unearths vital information about his premature death.
More Details
| Type | Book |
|---|---|
| ISBN13 | 9780099515210 |
| ISBN10 | 0099515210 |
| Number Of Pages | 656 |
| Item Weight | 496 g |
| Product Dimensions | 129 x 198 x 33 mm |
| Publisher / Reseller | Vintage Publishing |
| Format | paperback |
Media Reviews
"Thomson writes with snap-brio and a sense of relevance" -- Clive James Times Literary Supplement "A model of its kind: beautiful in its arrangement and narration, measured and honest without every being remotely dull. Thank goodness for Ian Thomson...over and over again it is Thomson who proves himself, through his precision, modesty and intelligence, the true and perfect biographer of Primo Levi" -- Craig Brown Mail on Sunday "A formidable work of literary biography... An absolutely brilliant account of wartime Italy... Very, very powerful" -- Richard Holmes BBC Radio Four "Clearly written with love, and unlikely to be surpassed" Sunday Telegraph "Pacy, straight-down-the-line-coolly authoritative" -- Blake Morrison Guardian
GoodReads Reviews
Author's Bio
Ian Thomson was one of the last to interview Primo Levi, and the first to journey in his tracks as
a biographer. He is an expert on Italian literature and has translated the Sicilian crime writer and essayist Leonardo Sciascia into English. Thomson is the author of two prize-winning works of reportage, Bonjour Blanc: A Journey Through Haiti and The Dead Yard: Tales of Modern Jamaica. He edited Articles of Faith: The Collected Tablet Journalism of Graham Greene, while his book Dante’s Divine Comedy: A Journey Without End was published in 2018. He is the recipient of the Royal Society of Literature’s Ondaatje Prize and the W. H. Heinemann Award. He lives in London.